Your Table Runneth Over

Use baubles and bows to create miniature fountains that are perfect as holiday centerpieces

Who says fountains are for outdoor enjoyment only?

During the upcoming weeks of endless guests and fattening food, use miniature fountains indoors to create centerpieces that provide soothing sounds and visual excitement. All you need is a small water pump kit and a pretty container such as a punch bowl, deep crystal dish or ice bucket.

To help you see the possibilities, a team of designers from Beckett water gardening products offers these fountains as ideas you can duplicate or build on.

The projects are made with a fountain kit that includes a pump, two nozzles, extension tube and filter; they are available for $24.99 at Home Depot and other garden centers. You can add any kind of embellishments you like -- flower petals or intact blooms, glittering ornaments, tinsel, sprigs of holly or evergreens -- whatever your imagination likes or whatever suits your holiday decor.

"All of the decorative items used are easy to find and budget friendly with big impact," says Nicole Chovan, a company spokeswoman.

"Just remember to use lots of color and different textures."

MAKING A CENTERPIECE

Make it waterproof. Choose a waterproof decorative bowl deep enough to accommodate the pump. Look around the house and in closets for big ceramic bowls, silver compotes or vintage china you never use but like. If the container is not waterproof or it's too delicate, use a plastic container as a liner.

Position the pump. Place the fountain pump in the center of the reservoir and attach the nozzle pattern of your choice. You can have it gurgle and bubble up or send out a gentle spray.

Decorate around the pump. You can camouflage the pump in many ways. To create a wreath around the pump, place a floral foam ring around it and then insert stems of faux or real flower and garden plants into the foam. For Thanksgiving and Christmas, use stems of colorful fall foliage or evergreens, berries and pods; tuck in ornaments and ribbons in colors you like.

For a more modern or contemporary appearance, use shiny ornament clusters with bendable wires attached and simply wrap the ornaments' wires around the base and connecting tube of the pump.

Remember the water. To ensure the pump operates properly, fill the bowl with water until the pump is completely submerged.

Learn more. For more ideas for using fountains, visit Beckett at www.888beck ett.com. *

DOES YOUR FOUNTAIN BUZZ?

If your tabletop fountain annoys you with a buzzing sound, first check the water level in the resevoir to make sure it's sufficient, according to experts at Beckett.

Container sizes also make a difference; larger containers usually mitigate buzzing sounds. It also helps to turn down the pump's flow adjustor.